ASSESSING IMPACTS OF SOCIALLY-MIXED PUBLIC HOUSING REVITALIZATION ON CHILDREN AND FAMILIES

Abstract

The negative social and health impacts of living in areas of concentrated poverty have been demonstrated in numerous studies. Residents of old public housing estates experience higher levels of delinquent behaviour and health risks. As a remedy to the challenges associated with living in concentrated poverty, initiatives have been undertaken to ‘revitalize’ such neighbourhoods and at the same time change the population composition to achieve greater social mix. Socially-mixed public housing revitalization initiatives have been widely implemented in the United States, the United Kingdom, the Netherlands, and Australia to improve the living conditions in public housing estates and the well-being of public housing residents. Despite its wide implementation, empirical results on the effect of such initiatives have been inconsistent. Further, very few research efforts have been dedicated to looking at outcomes of children and families. This dissertation consists of three unique mixed-method studies to investigate whether socially-mixed public housing revitalization, through the process of physical and social reconstruction, could improve the health and wellbeing of disadvantaged children and families. The first study is a quantitative analysis on the effect of the Regent Park Revitalization Project – a socially-mixed public housing revitalization initiative – on child mental health outcomes. The second study is a qualitative analysis to investigate the scholarly consensus on the purported mechanisms of socially-mixed public housing revitalization initiatives and their expert opinion on contextual factors and program components that trigger these mechanisms through stakeholder interviews. The third study is a realist synthesis that systematically reviewed the evidence regarding effects of socially-mixed public housing revitalization initiatives on the health and well-being of low-income children and families. Together, these three studies contributed new knowledge on how socially-mixed public housing revitalizations, through changes to the social and the physical environments of the neighbourhood, reduce health inequalities and improve the life trajectories of low-income children and families.